How to Be Compliant With Your Burner Management System

Fired equipment is dangerous and requires special attention, engineering knowledge, experience and training. What does a risk-based equivalent BMS design actually mean? And how can you be sure your equipment is safe?

Implementing a burner management system (BMS) requires a competent engineering team to design and deliver a compliant system that is safe to operate. Although the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) offers three prescriptive sets of standards to help make your equipment safe, this can be easier said than done.

The standards (85 on Boiler and Combustion Systems Hazards Code, 86 on Standard for Ovens and Furnaces and 87 on Recommended Practice for Fluid Heaters) are easier to comply with for new units. If you have an older unit that has gone through upgrades and is no longer compliant to its vintage NFPA standard—or never complied with any NFPA standard to begin with—compliance to a current standard can be very challenging.